Do Not Limit The Holy One Of Israel (Part 4): Fear Is A Spirit That Limits Our Dependence On God In Times Of Trouble (Teach)

DO NOT LIMIT THE HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL (PART 4): FEAR IS A SPIRIT THAT LIMITS OUR DEPENDENCE ON GOD IN TIMES OF TROUBLE (TEACH)

1. 1 Samuel 28: 3 Now Samuel had died, and all Israel had lamented for him and buried him in Ramah, in his own city. And Saul had put the mediums and the spiritists out of the land. 4 Then the Philistines gathered together, and came and encamped at Shunem. So Saul gathered all Israel together, and they encamped at Gilboa. 5 When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly. 6 And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams or by Urim or by the prophets. 7 Then Saul said to his servants, “Find me a woman who is a medium, that I may go to her and inquire of her.” And his servants said to him, “In fact, there is a woman who is a medium at En Dor.” 8 So Saul disguised himself and put on other clothes, and he went, and two men with him; and they came to the woman by night. And he said, “Please conduct a séance for me, and bring up for me the one I shall name to you.” 15 Now Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?” And Saul answered, “I am deeply distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God has departed from me and does not answer me anymore, neither by prophets nor by dreams. Therefore I have called you, that you may reveal to me what I should do.” 16 Then Samuel said: “So why do you ask me, seeing the Lord has departed from you and has become your enemy? 17 And the Lord has done for Himself as He spoke by me. For the Lord has torn the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbor, David. 18 Because you did not obey the voice of the Lord nor execute His fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore the Lord has done this thing to you this day. 19 Moreover the Lord will also deliver Israel with you into the hand of the Philistines. And tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. The Lord will also deliver the army of Israel into the hand of the Philistines.” 20 Immediately Saul fell full length on the ground, and was dreadfully afraid because of the words of Samuel. And there was no strength in him, for he had eaten no food all day or all night.

2. 1 Timothy 1:7: For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

3. Psalm 78: 41 Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.

INTRO: DO NOT LIMIT GOD (PT4A) FEAR IS A SPIRIT THAT LIMITS TRUSTING GOD

Chief Questions This Series Will Project Are: In What Ways Do We Limit God? Why Do We Limit God? How Do We Take Off The Limits? The Results Of A Life Without Limiting God. Some Examples From The Bible & Our Own Lives.

Quick Review: In The Introduction, We Looked At How The Hebrews Limited Their God In The Wilderness In Psalm 78 - they saw all the miracles yet they still doubted God. Then in Mark 6, they refused to accept who Christ was because they were too familiar with him. Thus He could not do many miracles in His own hometown. In 1 Kings 20, they limited God by thinking that He was God of the mountains only and not also God of the valleys and plains. That was a mistake. Today, from 1 Samuel 28, we limit God by our surrender to fear.

Limiting God: A limit is a point or level beyond which something does not or may not extend or pass. This is a restriction on the size or amount of something permissible or possible. Some words synonymous with Limit are restrict, curb, put in check, restrain, put a brake, freeze, regulate, control, etc. God’s problem is not with the atheist, the agnostic, the infidel, the devotees of modern godless & political movements – it is with His own people who limit Him.

ABOUT FEAR AND ITS DESTRUCTIVENESS

1. Illustration: Death Sent Announcement To Village 5 Death. 50 Death.

2. Illustration: Faimatta & Miah In Liberia During World War Iii

3. Illustration: My Mother’s Accident In 2010

4. Illustration: My First Coming To America

Biologists Say That Fear Is The First And Only Universal Emotion Expressed In Man & Animals. All of creation is dominated by fear. We come into this world stamped with fear and those fears are multiplied as we grow. 365 “Fears Nots” in the Bible. Definition: Fear: 1) An agitated feeling aroused by an awareness of actual or threatening danger, trouble, etc. 2) An uneasy feeling that something dreadful may happen. 3) A feeling of deep respect. Two Kinds Of Fear: